Shopper suspected of racist Wal-Mart announcement

Several customers have been boycotting the retail giant and its Washington Township, N.J. since then, even though the store manager immediately apologized and admonished the comment over the same intercom system minutes later.

The announcement was made from one of 25 phones located throughout the sales floor and in areas accessible to employees only. Initially it was not clear whether one of the store's 700 employees or a shopper were to blame.

The case is being investigated by Washington Township Police and Gloucester County Prosecutors as a potential hate crime.

Wal-Mart says it has found evidence that a customer may have broadcast the hateful message.

"At this point, we have no reason to believe that any Wal-Mart associates were involved," the company said in a statement Friday. "Our investigation determined that a specific customer in the store may be responsible and we have turned this evidence over to the police."